Renewing the faith

MVHS Coach Larry Branson

Larry Branson, Mountain View High School’s new head football
coach, said his players will be ready to dig in by the start of the
season, when they play Marana High School on Aug. 26. To prepare,
the Lions will be on the field at 12:01 a.m. when official practice
begins on Aug. 4.

Structure and stability are essential for a successful football
program. However, with its third new head coach in three years,
Mountain View High School is struggling.

Larry Branson, who was hired in February after first-year coach
Justin Argraves left for Tucson High School, said he knows he has
his work cut out for him moving forward.

Mountain View finished 3-7 last season, and from fans down to
players, faith in the program has faded, Branson said.

“We have some good players out there, we just have to get all of
them on the same page,” he said. “The seniors on this team have
been through three different head coaches; there is no
stability.”

If anyone can turn around the Mountain View program, it’s
Branson.

The coach, who stresses a love for high school football, is a
member of the National Football Hall of Fame for excellence in high
school coaching.

Branson moved from Missouri to Arizona two years ago. He worked
in Toltec for two years while waiting for a head coaching position
to open up.

When Mountain View began scouting for a new coach last February,
he jumped at the opportunity, he said.

“I am known for turning programs around, and that’s what I want
to do here,” Branson said.

To make that turnaround, Branson has spent a lot of the summer
focusing on speed training, strength and mind training.

Argraves took a lot of the coaching staff with him to Tucson
High, and so Branson has brought in new personnel and focused on
building relationships with the players.

One of the new aspects of training comes from Mike Hernandez,
who spent the summer working with players on speed training.

To work on attitude and mind training, Branson has lined up a
visit with the Pima County Regional SWAT team.

“These guys with the SWAT team know if one or more guys don’t do
their job, someone’s going to get hurt,” said Branson. “It’s the
same thing with those 11 men on the football field.”

Physically, Branson said his players will be ready by the start
of the season, when they play Marana High School on Aug. 26.
However, changing the atmosphere and spirit surrounding the program
will take a little longer.

Branson said the reality is school spirit and attitude will
change with winning.

A tough schedule isn’t going to make it easy for the Mountain
View Lions to win in the 2011-2012 season, but Branson said he is
confident in the team’s talents.

Under the recent Arizona Interscholastic Association changes,
Mountain View is now a Division II team, but will battle many of
the same opponents as last season.

“We are going to be playing a lot of playoff-bound teams,” said
Branson. “If you want to be good, you’ve got to play the best
teams.”

A believer that fall football sets the tone, Branson said if the
Mountain View Lions do well this season, it will mean a better year
for the entire school.

“We can’t continue being a 3-7 team,” he said.

Confident the Lions are going to surprise some teams in the new
season, Branson is creating new traditions to improve attitude.

On Aug. 4, when the official practice begins like many other
football programs, the Mountain View Lions will be the first on the
field.

The Lions will begin a full pads practice at 12:01 a.m.

In the meantime, the players will continue with light practices
and weight training.